Into the Trees
by s y m d r o n e
Summary: "Sasuke, you're here." I turn my gaze to the source and it feels like my entire body might collapse into itself. There she stands no more than five feet from me. The image of my mother, who I am certain died thirteen years ago. / AU-ish, Halloween gift.
1. Prologue

_Trick or Treat! _Happy Halloween, Chosha. :)

**Disclaimer**: I do not own the character(s) portrayed in this story. Sasuke Uchiha is the property of Mr. Kishimoto, as are all of the Naruto characters/ideas mentioned throughout.

**A/N**: This story is just a (sad attempt at a) little horror for a gift exchange on my favorite forum. Whether you read or not, I don't mind, but it was made especially for **Chosha Kurenai** and was based on what she asked for. NOTE that it is a little AU and there are implications that Sasuke's birthday is near Halloween/October. I know that it's actually in June...or July. Whatever.

* * *

Thirteen years have passed.

Today is the anniversary of my parents' death—_my clan's end_. It's also my birthday. I haven't celebrated my birthday for thirteen years. There has never been a reason to; I died that night along with the rest of my clansmen. For the longest time, I thought that my brother had somehow forgotten to kill me with the others. I was a mistake. The mistake that would end his life.

It might go without saying, but I always assumed that murdering my brother would grant me inner peace. I dedicated my life to bettering my techniques, growing stronger... And in time, I killed him. I killed my brother. If there was any satisfaction in having his blood on my hands, what I learned after his death completely shattered the feeling. People higher up had ordered him to kill our family and run. I wanted to confront the elders of Konoha. I wanted to make them pay for what they had done to my brother, to my family...to me. Instead, I just let it go.

For eleven years I had allowed thoughts of revenge to control my life. I wanted it to end.

I'm eighteen now, a legal adult, and for the first time in thirteen years...my friends are throwing me a birthday party.


	2. Into the Trees

"Damn it! I forgot the cups." I look up from the paper bag I'm digging through to see the blond, scrunching his face up angrily and scratching his head. Naruto looks quite like a retarded ape when he's angry. "They must still be at your place, Sasu-kun."

Sakura snorts from across the room. "Naruto! I _told_ you to make sure you got everything! Now you're going to have to go back and get it, ya dumbass." The pinkette is busy decorating Naruto's living room with confetti and streamers. "Hurry up, though; we're not going to wait on you for the cake."

Naruto heaves a sigh and grumbles something unintelligible, then starts for the door. "Wait," I grab him by the shoulder, alerting both occupants of the room. They're each being very careful today, like they think I'll snap. "I'll go get them."

"Sasuke, you don't have to—"

It's funny how a simple shake of my head will shut Sakura up. If only it was that easy with Naruto...

"I'll go, don't worry," the blond says, shoving me away. "I'll be back in, like, three minutes."

When he again starts for the door, I grab the collar of his jacket and pull him back. "I'm not letting you go into my house alone, dobe. Just stay here and help Sakura. I'll be right back." Before he has time to argue further, I push past him. Naruto lives only a short distance away from the Uchiha compound—only a couple of minutes on foot—so I won't have much time to myself before the party.

Well, there's always the long way...

Shoving hands into deep pockets, I start off down the winding path and veer left instead of continuing straight towards the compound. Rather than cut through town, I'll just go around. The "scenic" route, some would say.

Within about five minutes I'm approaching the edge of town and the numerous buildings grow less compact, giving way to trees and shrubbery and patches of uncut grass. The trees grow thicker and closer together the further I walk, and within another couple of minutes, I'm directly beside the infamous Konoha forest. Most of the leaves have fallen already and those that haven't look as if one good gust of wind could send them to their fate. As if on cue, a breeze pulls several leaves from their places, stripping the trees of what little cover they have left.

It takes a moment to realize that I have stopped walking to enjoy the scenery. On a sigh I roll my shoulders, then take another step towards my desolate home, but before my foot hits the ground, something stops me.

_Sasuke._

A voice. Somewhere in the forest?

_Sasuke._

It is in the forest. "Who's there?" I call after a minute, despite the urge to ignore the strange voice and go on. It sounds familiar somehow...eerily familiar. I take a step closer, squinting my eyes and glaring through the trees, but I can't see anyone.

_Come to me, Sasuke. I've missed you._

The voice is so painfully familiar. Why can't I place it?

_Son...?_

That's it. "M-mom?" I know it's impossible, but this voice sounds exactly like I remember. I may have only been five years old when she died, but I will _never forget_ what she sounded like. "Mom?" It's irrational, I know, but there's this childlike expectancy that forces me another step into the forest.

_Sasuke. Come to me._

I like to think of myself as very capable of distinguishing what is real from what is an illusion. There is no hint of a Genjutsu here, but how can it be real? There is no logical explanation for the voice. There is no logical explanation for what possessed me to continue further into the woods. It's going to be dark soon, Naruto and Sakura are waiting, this is the voice of my dead mother...what am I doing? It's as if I'm no longer in control.

Deeper and deeper into the forest, pulled by a voice that I haven't heard in thirteen years. I know it can't be real, but I have to find out what this is. If it's a prank, it definitely isn't funny. If it's something else...well, I have to find out. I continue running—when did I start running?—through the forest, pushing past trees and squeezing in between them, anxious and nervous and angry all at the same time.

A glance over my shoulder makes me aware of just how far I've run. I can no longer see the treeline, just an endless sea of dead trees. Reluctantly I stop running, panting quietly, listening for the voice once more.

"Sasuke, you're here." The voice says, so close that I jump. I turn my gaze to the source and it feels like my entire body might collapse into itself. There she is...no more than five feet from me. The image of my mother, who I am certain died thirteen years ago, is standing there and smiling at me. My chest tightens when she speaks again. "Would you like one?"

I don't know how I missed it before, but she's holding a tray of cinnamon treats. The smell hits me like a wrecking ball, bringing back some of the few pleasant memories of my past. My mother holds the tray up and offers a treat and I can see that they're exactly like she used to make them. It must be instinct that guides me to pluck one of the treats from the tray, because I'm sure that I wouldn't be able to function properly on my own.

The smile on her face is enough to bring tears to my eyes. "Mom? How are you here? You...I thought you...how is this even—" She cuts me off with a single finger, still smiling.

"Don't worry about that, Sasuke. I made these treats especially for you. Won't you taste them?"

I still have no idea what is happening. It must be a dream, for that is the only rational explanation for this. I glance at the cinnamon treat in my hand, then at my mother. "...Okay." I take a bite and revel in the taste...but then frown when my mother giggles. Almost immediately the forest starts to grow blurry. "Wha...?"

"Goodnight, Sasuke. Sleep tight," she whispers, and the world turns black.

* * *

_...Visions of the past..._  
_...Laughing with my older brother..._

My consciousness comes back in brief patches. I can see that my hands are tied and assume that my legs are as well. I'm dizzy, but it feels like I'm being dragged across the forest floor. It's dark. I can see the faint, flickering glow of lanterns somewhere behind me. I'm fading again...so tired...black.

_...An approving father..._  
_...Arts and crafts with mother..._

* * *

When I open my eyes, everything is still black. It takes a moment for me to realize that I've been blindfolded as well, and with a tug and a kick, I realize that my bindings are still firmly in place. "Hello?" I call out, groaning at the ache it causes in my head. _  
_

"My, my, you bad kid, how dare you wake up so early!" The voice is nearby, similar to the one in the forest, but definitely not my mother. I'm a little relieved to find that this is the voice of a stranger.

My throat is a little sore, and so my voice is hoarse, but I manage to sound unworried. "Take this blindfold off so that I can see you." It's a command and there's no doubt about that. The stranger is quiet for a moment and the room fills with the sound of a knife chopping something. It doesn't seem like the voice has any intent to remove the cloth, so I raise my bound hands to try it myself.

"If your blindfold comes off," the voice suddenly says, pausing the sound of the knife, "then should I blind you instead?" My hands freeze on the cloth blindfold and I furrow my brow, chuckling almost nervously. She sounds serious. "Hey look, you're laughing. Now isn't that the cutest sight?" The chopping continues and the voice sounds less pernicious.

Several minutes of silence pass. Then, "Why am I here?" Again the chopping abruptly stops.

"...You don't know?" This is a different voice, from somewhere to the right of the first. The realization that I am outnumbered drives a cold shiver down my spine. Another moment of silence passes and the second voice, noticeably deeper than the first, acknowledges that I have no idea what he means. "You don't know." Is it just me, or does he sound disappointed?

The first voice speaks up and begins to chop once more. "It's been so many years. You can't expect him to remember immediately." I can hear the smile in her voice. "We'll help you remember, Sasuke."

"Remember what?" I ask too quickly. My nerves are shot. This is just too weird. "Help me remember what?"

Both of the voices are silent for several minutes. Then the man replies, "You still wear lies...so let's get back to our play tonight." The response doesn't make any sense to me, so I open my mouth to question him, but the female voice interrupts before I have the chance.

"Hey..give me that..?.."

I know that she's talking to me, but I don't know what she's talking about. Then I feel something thin and round in my hand. It must have been there all along. Even blinded I know what it is—it's a necklace that belonged to my mother. One of the few things I kept after the massacre. Unfortunately, I lost it on a mission quite some time ago. "Where did you get this?" I try to ask, but my voice cracks, and my whole body trembles.

What the hell is going on?

"Give me that. Quickly, quickly, just give it here right now." The woman—or maybe the man—snatches the necklace from my bound grasp before I can do anything to stop them. "Don't ask why or when or where, you don't even need to know how." I hear the faint sound of something being pushed onto a plate, then the woman is in front of me. "Eat these sweets."

I instantly clamp my mouth shut.

"Oh, dear." I feel her beginning to lift the blindfold. In a second, it's off. It's my mother. My chest tightens and I feel a little nauseous as she glances toward the man, whom I realize as I follow her gaze appears exactly as my father did thirteen years ago. "Could you...?"

The man grunts in the same fashion my father always had and comes closer. I press myself hard against the wall, my mind swimming. He grabs one of the cinnamon treats that have been chopped into small pieces and puts it before my mouth. "Open."

A tear rolls down my face. "...D-dad..."

There's no struggle as he places the treat in my mouth, though he has to force me to chew. My mother looks concerned as I swallow, another tear streaming down my cheek.

_I don't know what they'll do to me,  
But they're my mom and dad, you see?  
How can I disobey?  
The world fades and swirls...  
Will I live another day?_


End file.
